The hall doors slammed shut behind Evan, sealing away the panicked shouts and ringing steel. Out here, the world felt heavier—thicker. Smoke clung to the air, sharp and acrid, stinging his throat.
The coppery tang of blood soured his tongue, and something else lingered beneath it—a rancid, animal musk that turned his stomach. The riftspawn's roar split the sky again, closer this time, a guttural, inhuman bellow that made the cobblestones tremble under his boots.
He pressed his back against the cold stone wall, fingers white-knuckled around the talisman. The metal scorched his palm with its steady, searing heat.
"Move," the thing seemed to hum, like a heartbeat drumming against his skin. "Don't stop."
Shadows flickered at his feet, twitching and restless, drawn to the pull of the relic. They coiled like snakes, sluggish and thick, waiting for him to decide.
Bang!
A cart splintered against the courtyard wall as a guard flew through it, sent airborne by the riftspawn's backhand.
His body crumpled with a wet thud, limp as a ragdoll. Evan's stomach lurched. He'd read this part—the raid at Veyrsgard—but the book never mentioned the smell or how the screams cut off halfway, wet and garbled.
"Zane!"
Tessa's voice sliced through the noise, sharp and ragged. He spun. She was at the doorway, apron flapping in the wind, eyes wide with disbelief—and fear.
For him. For Zane. Her knuckles were white where they gripped the frame, and for a split second, it made him hesitate. She cared. About this kid. About the shell Evan was wearing.
Flap-flap!
Her apron snapped wildly, a frantic rhythm against the storm.
"Get back inside!" he barked, harsher than he meant. She flinched, but he turned away before she could argue.
He couldn't explain—not the talisman burning in his grip, not the shadows hissing at his feet, or the reason his legs kept moving toward the fight instead of away from it. Jamie's face flickered in his mind—slack, bloodied, and pale beneath the wreckage—and Evan shoved the memory down. No more standing still. Not this time.
The riftspawn's head swung toward him. Slitted, molten eyes locked onto his frame, gleaming with an unnatural yellow glow. Its breath came in heavy, guttural snorts, thick with the stink of rot.
Evan's heart slammed against his ribs, hard and uneven. The talisman pulsed—once, twice—then a third time, sharp and insistent. Shadows surged.
"Now," it rasped, a voice low and guttural, coiling through his bones like smoke.
The creature lunged. Evan didn't think—his body moved before his brain could catch up. The shadows flared, and the world tilted sideways.
Fade Shift kicked in with a sick twist in his gut, and suddenly he was ten feet away, crouched behind a barrel as the riftspawn's claws smashed into the stone where he'd stood. Shards of rock skittered across the courtyard, biting into his face.
Smash!
Stone fractured, bits and dust flying like shrapnel.
"Still got it," Evan muttered under his breath, voice trembling slightly. His eyes flicked toward the riftspawn's flank—toward the shifting patch where the blackened scales softened into sickly gray flesh.
A weak spot. His fingers twitched.
The shadows coiled tighter around his wrists, moving before he did, already knowing. "You want to play hero, huh?" he thought bitterly.
A guard—burly, face smeared with dirt—charged in, spear raised high. "Over here, you ugly bastard!" he roared, slamming the tip into the beast's haunch. The riftspawn hissed, whirling faster than it should've, and lashed out. The guard dodged, barely, but the claws grazed his thigh, leaving a jagged gash. He stumbled with a guttural curse.
Swoosh!
The claw cut the air, just missing the guard's throat.
Evan's legs moved before he could stop them. He sprinted, feet barely scraping the stone. Shadows pulsed at his heels, the talisman's heat climbing up his arm.
His vision narrowed. One breath. Two. Then he was there—close enough to smell the rancid reek of the beast's breath.
Without thinking, he swung. The shadows surged with him, clinging to his fist in thick, smoky tendrils.
When his knuckles connected with the soft patch beneath the creature's arm, the shadows exploded, punching through scale and sinew. The riftspawn roared, staggering, black ichor spilling from the wound. It was a shallow hit—but it was a hit.
Thud!
His shadow-wrapped fist slammed into the beast's flesh.
"Holy shit," Evan rasped, stumbling back as the creature whipped its head around. Its breath blasted over him, hot and putrid. For a heartbeat, the beast hesitated—eyes flickering with something close to confusion. It felt that.
The guard gaped at him, blood dripping down his leg, spear slack in his grip. "What… what are you, Zane?" he rasped, voice hoarse and disbelieving.
"Not dead yet," Evan spat, chest heaving.
The riftspawn roared, swiping at him with a claw big enough to split him in half. Fade Shift surged, warping him sideways in a blink. The claw tore through empty air, but the wind of it sent him skidding back, boots scrabbling for purchase.
Whoomph!
Air rushed around him, his balance failing for a moment.
He hit the ground hard, bruising his knees on the stone. The beast turned its attention to the guards, but Evan didn't stop. The talisman pulsed again, hotter, harder. His breath came in ragged gasps. The shadows thickened, writhing like living tar, and he clenched his fists. His legs shook beneath him, muscles aching, but he moved.
"Finish it."
The voice slithered through his veins, dark and hungry.
Another lunge. His fingers splayed wide, and the shadows answered.
They surged forward in a tidal wave, slamming into the beast's wounded flank with bone-snapping force. The riftspawn reeled, howling in pain, black ichor spilling in thick rivulets. Its hind leg buckled, nearly collapsing under its own weight.
Crack!
Bone splintered under the force of the shadows.
"Zane!"
Tessa's scream ripped through the fray, and Evan's eyes snapped toward her. She was halfway across the courtyard, too close, far too close. The riftspawn turned toward the sound, its molten eyes narrowing.
No.
"Get back!" he roared, but she didn't move. Her feet were rooted, terror wide in her eyes.
The beast lunged.
Evan didn't think. The shadows pulled him forward. Fade Shift twisted the air, and suddenly he was there, shoving her down.
Claws ripped through the space they had been standing in, missing her by inches. They hit the ground hard—her elbow slammed into his ribs, knocking the wind from him.
Thump!
They landed in a tangled heap, the breath punched from both of them.
The talisman flared in his grip, the last of its power pouring into the shadows.
They lashed out—wild, reckless—and struck the beast's side. Not deep, but enough. The guards swarmed in, spears sinking into its wounded flank. The beast thrashed, ichor gushing in spurts, and let out one final, guttural wail before crashing to the ground in a heavy, shuddering heap.
Thud!
The riftspawn collapsed, the courtyard finally still.
Evan's legs gave out. He sank to his knees, trembling, breath ragged. The talisman cooled, its pulse faint and sluggish. His hands were empty—no shadows, no strength left. Just him, shaking and hollow.
"Gods, kid," the scarred guard rasped, limping over. Blood streaked her face.
"You're no ghost. What the hell are you?"
Evan stared at the corpse. The ichor glistened black in the moonlight, but he saw Jamie's face in it—pale, broken, and still. He had moved this time. Not fast enough for Jamie. Maybe not fast enough for Tessa either.
But fast enough for now.